Toyota Formula 1

Toyota Launches First F1 car

Toyota, the world's third-largest car manufacturer, has unveiled its first ever Formula 1 car to the world’s media. The corporation’s car is the natural successor to Toyota's world championship-winning rally Celica and Corolla cars and dominant GT-One Le Mans projects.

Designed and built from scratch by Toyota's Cologne-based Formula 1 operation Toyota Motorsport GmbH in 19 months, an updated version of V10-powered Toyota car will make its Grand Prix debut in 2002.

The arrival of Toyota in Formula 1 is the most significant recent addition to a sport that counts amongst its entry cars built or powered by some of the world's most important and legendary automakers. Recognizing that the learning curve in Formula 1 is one of the steepest in any sport, Toyota Motorsport nevertheless is optimistic of reaching the highest levels of Grand Prix racing.

"A big-size cheque book alone does not win races. There are recent examples of that,” declared Toyota Motorsport President Ove Andersson. "It is the strength, dedication and passion of the whole team that makes it successful or not. This takes time and is extremely difficult to achieve. Our first task is to build the best possible car. Only when we have succeeded, can we maybe start thinking, or better dreaming, ­about challenging for the title."

Toyota's decision to enter F1 was a well-considered one. Toyota already benefits from the engineering spin-offs of competing in global motor sport, but Formula 1 offers the ultimate laboratory in which to test automotive technology. In addition, after the soccer World Cup and the Olympic Games, Formula 1 is the world's most watched sport.

"Toyota succeeded in the World Rally Championship, Le Mans (2nd place '99) and CART (5 victories 2000). But our research showed us that we needed an exciting global programme," explains Tsutomu Tomita, Chairman of Toyota

Motorsport. "This reflected the enthusiasm of a lot of our younger staff. I think that in short, top management accepted the challenging spirits of the young generation of Toyota employees and customers. F1 is a very new field to Toyota and we know many big car manufacturers are competing in F1. One of the main objectives of our entry into world-popular F1 is to enhance our brand image through our challenges. Therefore, Toyota decided to challenge in F1 …

Toyota's commitment to not only build both chassis and engine but also start their team from scratch - rather than buy an existing team – is typical of Toyota's forthright attitude to competition.  

"It is the culture of Toyota to take up the full challenge and start from the very beginning with a project so that at least there can be no doubt about the responsibility for failure or success.  I believe this is the background of the decision. Being engine supplier to a famous team is thought not to give the right return on investment and the car would not be a Toyota. Toyota builds complete road cars so why not a complete F1 race car? For sure we will all learn much more this way," believes Ove Andersson.

In the next 11 months, Toyota's world class drivers Allan McNish (the reigning American Le Mans Champion) and Mika Salo (former Ferrari, BAR, Sauber, Tyrrell and Lotus F1 driver) will put the revolutionary racing machine through a punishing schedule of testing, starting in the next few days.  The test programme will be conducted at Toyota Motorsport's home track Circuit Paul Ricard and at many of the world's F1 venues.

"Of course there is a desire to see the car race as soon as possible but we are realistic and want to have the car well prepared for racing, so that's why we are embarking on such an exhausting test programme," said Toyota Motorsport’s Technical Director, André de Cortanze. "In the beginning I want to be able to make more than 300 kilometres before retiring into the pits. There are many other goals after that but our number one aim is to achieve reliability as well as speed.  There is no point having a fast car if it cannot finish."

The choice of Salo and McNish was a clear one, according to Ove Andersson.

Toyota's test programme requires the input of experienced drivers. But in addition to experience, Toyota is looking to the future with its continuing project to support up-and-coming young drivers.

"Our drivers Mika and Allan, we believe, will be able to help us move forward with our project because of their past experience. They are more than capable to provide the technical feedback needed by our engineers and technicians,” explains Andersson.  "We have worked with Allan during our Le Mans programme and found him technically excellent and a pleasant person to work with. Mika has a good reputation and vast experience both from working in small as well as in big teams.  He will be instrumental in helping us get our act together. Working as part of the team they have a tough demanding job to do in the coming years."

Both Salo and McNish are itching to drive the new Toyota car. Salo saw the completed car for the first time at a recent preview for Toyota Motorsport's multi-national team at Cologne. It was a moving moment for the Finn.

"It was a chance to say thank you to the guys who built the car and to look forward to making it competitive. If looks are anything to go on it will be very fast, but all the revolutionary stuff is underneath,” says Salo.  "Not only for Toyota but for Formula 1, it is important that we are competitive - Formula 1 needs another dominant team. Hopefully that will be Toyota. That is why I am here."


Formula One Decision & Vision

The announcement of Toyota's decision to enter Formula One was made by Mr Hiroshi Okuda, Chairman of the Board in January 1999.

Toyota has an ambitious long term vision of being able to challenge for the FIA Formula One Constructor and Driver titles. Nothing less! It's an exciting vision that demands an enormous commitment of resources and time, requiring them to leverage all of their world-leading skills, systems and technology. Week after week, year after year. To innovate, to race, to perfect, to win.

"It's a huge undertaking to fully prepare for Formula One but we believe the rewards are well worth it", says Akihiko Saito, Senior Managing Director, Toyota Motor Corporation, responsible for overall Toyota Motorsports activities including F1.

As both engine and chassis builder, Toyota has made a huge commitment to the Toyota F1 programme and the full resources of Toyota will be available to the team to ensure the best possible result. More importantly, beyond the track, we will be fully leveraging our Formula One participation in our marketing, advertising and communication activities.

Toyota Motorsport GmbH (TMG), Cologne, was chosen as the natural base for this new initiative. There already existed a large specialized motorsport facility with skilled staff and a long and successful track record in World Championship Rally and Le Mans GT sports car racing.

An expansion programme started to increase the existing facility of some 18,000sqm to over 30,000sqm and to include new raceshops, design, development, manufacture and assembly of the entire car. Other features are a 50% windtunnel, a helipad and the latest in CNC machining equipment.

The Toyota Formula One V10 engine programme will be entirely designed and built in house in Cologne by a team of talented engineers headed by Norbert Kreyer and Luca Marmorini and supported by the engineering facilities in TMC Japan. The team is equipped with a total of eight engine dynamometers for the extensive bench testing that will be required. The first single-cylinder engine model is already running and the first F1 engine is expected to fire up in September 2000.

The Toyota F1 chassis has been under design since mid 1999 by a team headed by Jean-Claude Martens and a number of wind tunnel models have been constructed and tested in the Lola facility in England. Computer simulation techniques have been used to optimise the aerodynamic package that is such an important element of a modern Formula One car.

Toyota have already started the task of developing and proving various vehicle components such as hydraulics and brakes via an intensive testing programme with the Le Mans GT-One car driven by Allan McNish. This programme will continue throughout 2000. In spring 2001 testing of the first Toyota Formula One test car is scheduled to commence. It is hoped that this meticulous approach to preparation for Formula One competition will enable the team to be as reliable and competitive as possible when they "hit the ground running" in 2002.

The first Toyota Formula One racecar will launch early in 2002 and compete in that year's FIA Formula One World Championship.